myerstownherald.com

By ASHLEY DOS SANTOS
It’s finally happened – the once happy and loveable “Jon & Kate Plus 8″ is taking the plunge into the realm of dysfunctional TV families.
Kate Gosselin, now one of the most talked about TV moms in history, filed divorce papers on June 22 after making the statement, “Over the course of this weekend, Jon’s activities have left me no choice but to file legal procedures in order to protect myself and our children.”
Should someone who has exposed their entire family to a TV crew, producers and millions of viewers over the past two years really be making statements about “protecting” their children?
By filing for divorce, Kate may have been protecting her kids – but she was also protecting the guaranteed mega-boost in ratings that night for her hit reality series.
TLC has finally begun to see how their reality show may be a bit too real.
They announced a halt in the show’s production while the family’s “transition” takes place, thereby removing their eight unsuspecting children from the media spotlight.
Of course, the lights can only be dimmed for so long, as the series will be back up and running on Aug. 3. This gives the kids just under two months to adjust to a complete upheaval in their world as they have always known it.
Will this situation finally make TV producers, or Americans themselves, realize what these shows can do to good people?
Of course not.
America has come way too far with the show and all of its drama to give it up now.
TLC’s promotional spots alone have been laying it on thick, and for good reason. Studio execs have managed to successfully create a nationwide addiction in “Jon & Kate Plus 8,” with everyone from “The Today Show” to actor Ryan Reynolds weighing in on the family-turned-statistic.
In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, Reynolds stated, “I wanna see ‘Jon & Kate Plus 8: The Musical,’” he says. “Jon versus Kate. I wanna see four kids on one side and four kids on the other, snapping menacingly to music as they walk toward one another.”
His sardonic take on the situation may seem comical, if not improbable. But I wouldn’t be so quick to dismiss his idea. Monday night’s episode brought a series – and network – best of 10.6 million viewers. Magazines featuring Jon/Kate covers have seen their sales skyrocket.
This family of ten has become a money-making machine of millions within two short years.
The Gosselins are now a textbook case of reality TV going too far. These eight children will grow up with reruns and magazine articles chronicling the demise of their parents’ marriage for the foreseeable future.
It’s safe to assume that if episodes of Fox’s “Temptation Island,” which aired in 2001, are still on television today, the Gosselins’ family drama will play out for quite some time.
But the truth is, there may never be a “too far” for reality TV. If the ruin of a 10-year marriage with 8 small casualties isn’t enough to draw a line, then the line may actually be nonexistent.
Although TLC has declared that they are concerned about the well-being of the Gosselins, TV networks’ number one concern is and always will be increasing their ratings to make money.
And as viewers have demonstrated in droves, Americans need drama-filled reality shows to satisfy their ongoing addictions.
By postponing production of the show for 1½ months, TLC and the Gosselins are simply anteing up on the anticipation for new episodes come Labor Day weekend. A brilliant ploy for yet another ratings boost at the expense of children too young to protest on their own behalf.
Kate’s brother came out on Tuesday begging for people to stop watching the show for the sake of the kids. No viewers means no ratings, which means no cameras in the children’s faces.
But let’s be honest. Asking TLC to put a stop to everything “Jon and Kate” is like asking McDonald’s to stop making the Big Mac. Until America develops a distaste for family ruin – or for delicious hamburgers – reality TV will continue to go “too far”.
The buck does not stop with the Gosselins or even their show’s producers – it lies squarely on the shoulders of their ratings-boosting, gossip-seeking fans.
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Ashley Dos Santos serves as a senior account executive at Crosby~Volmer International Communications in Washington D.C. She received her bachelor of arts degree in women & gender studies and romance languages from Dartmouth College.